Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange on March 5, 2024.
Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters
U.S. stock futures were little changed Wednesday morning after the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell for a second straight day in a tough start to the quarter.
dow futures fell 56 points, or 0.14%. S&P 500 Futures fell by 0.15%, while the Nasdaq 100 Futures fell 0.2%.
Wall Street is coming off a losing session for major benchmarks after last week's tough inflation data, as well as some strong economic data, left investors fearing the Federal Reserve will take longer to cut interest rates. . Treasury yields soared and the 10-year bond rate hit its highest level since November. Oil prices also rose to five-month highs.
On Tuesday, the shares of 30 Dow fell almost 400 points, or 1%. He S&P 500 lost 0.7%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell almost 1%.
Still, some market watchers remain generally bullish on stocks, saying the stock should see some consolidation after a strong start to the year. The S&P 500 comes off its best first quarter since 2019.
"I think it's a garden-variety pullback," Kristen Bitterly, head of global wealth investment solutions at Citi, said Tuesday on CNBC's "Closing Bell." "We've been hearing day after day that we're hitting or within reach of all-time highs. So I don't see anything to read today other than resurgent geopolitics and rising yields."
"We know the Fed's path from here is downward. We know inflation is coming down. And we know earnings have turned around as well," Bitterly continued. "So when you have that fundamental context, it's actually quite constructive for risk assets in general."
On Wednesday, investors will get more information on the labor market with ADP's private payrolls report, which is released ahead of March jobs data on Friday. The ISM services index will be published after the opening.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will also speak, as will other central bank speakers, including Federal Reserve Governors Michelle Bowman and Adriana Kugler. Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee and Fed Vice President for Supervision Michael Barr will also speak at the events.
As for earnings, Levi Strauss will report after the close.
